Losing a client to suicide is your worst nightmare. And there inevitably comes a time when the suicidal client is more than just an intangible dread. When an actual person, suffering and sitting in your office reveals they are having suicidal thoughts, many clinicians are left feeling unprepared, frightened, and unsure what to do next. The weight of keeping someone alive can steer you in the direction of avoidance. Desperate and alone, suicidal clients can find themselves passed from one therapist to the next. And that's not care.

Don't let fear push you away.

This recording will transform how you view and work with suicidal clients and give you the clinical tools you need to save lives.

Full of thought provoking lecture, engaging case studies, and guided instruction on a host of powerful clinical applications, this recording will provide you with the tools you need to:

Assess for suicidal risk and identify implicit and explicit expressions of suicidal thought.

Formulate a game-plan for crisis when suicide is imminent.

Intervene in suicidal despair with proactive approaches derived from the evidence-based efficacy of CBT and DBT.

Effectively use targeted language with suicidal clients that will help you avoid stigma and successfully communicate your compassion.

Provide innovative grief support resources that connect clients and clinicians with other survivors of suicide and suicide loss

Feel confident and capable to work with suicidal clients and guide them out of the darkness and back into the light!

Objectives

Assess individuals at risk of suicide with a clinical approach that identifies both explicit and implicit expressions of suicidal thought.

Ascertain key indicators of imminent suicide and develop a strategy for determining when and how to hospitalize clients.

Formulate a CBT and DBT oriented case conceptualization that addresses how to effectively work with specific populations including veterans and the elderly.

Employ a collaborative safety approach to help clients survive a suicidal crisis while avoiding the pitfalls of suicide contracting and the false sense of security and decreased clinical vigilance that can accompany their use.

Connect suicidal clients with communication strategies that convey your compassion and support and effectively strengthen the therapeutic alliance.

Reduce access to lethal means with tips and tactics for implementing a multi-systemic approach that incorporates the suicidal person’s social connections into their safety plan.

Outline

Suicide: Who, When, How and Where

Addiction recovery

Trauma-informed care

Populations with multiple risk factors

Suicide attempt survivors – learning from their experience

Upstream clinical practices: reaching people before the point of crisis

Formulate Treatment Plans that Help Clients Regulate Emotions and Make Them Feel Valued and Connected

Collaborative safety planning (or “Why Suicide Contracting is Dead”)

Proactive approaches to decrease the likelihood of suicidal despair

Multi-system approaches – support systems

Evidence-based treatments:

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive restructuring strategies

Emotional regulation exercises

Behavioral Activation

Dialectical Behavior Therapy

How to organize a skills training group

Tips for phone coaching

Relapse prevention plans

Reduce access to lethal means

Working with specific populations: veterans, the elderly

Confidently Handle Crisis Situations

Conduct a behavioral chain analysis

Validating reasons for suicide

Identify reasons for living

Use distress tolerance and CBT skills to manage a crisis

When and how to hospitalize

Suicide Grief Support and Innovative Suicide-Specific Care

Implement Suicide Grief Support

Understand the unique nature of suicide grief

Peer-based support: Connect clients to other survivors of loss

Access and Reclaim compassion

Somatic resourcing

Remembered resources

Assess clients self-talk

ReInvest in a Life Worth Living: Rekindle the Desires of the Heart

The PIE of life – brainstorm possibilities of growth

Cultivate social connection and re-engagement

Support and grief groups

Toxic people

Working with families impacted by loss

Choice and perspective

Foster gratitude and a spirit of contentment after loss

Measurements of Post-Traumatic Growth

Author

SALLY SPENCER-THOMAS, PSY.D., MNM

Sally Spencer-Thomas, Psy.D., is a clinical psychologist and inspirational international speaker. Dr. Spencer-Thomas was moved to work in suicide prevention after her younger brother, a Denver entrepreneur, died of suicide after a difficult battle with bipolar condition.

Dr. Spencer-Thomas has been an invited speaker at the White House on the topics of mental health and suicide prevention and has held leadership positions for the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention, the International Association for Suicide Prevention, the American Association for Suicidology, and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. She has won multiple awards for her leadership including the 2014 Survivor of the Year from the American Association of Suicidology, the 2014 Invisible Disabilities Association Impact Honors Award, the 2012 Alumni Master Scholar from the University of Denver, the 2015 Farbarow Award from the International Association for Suicide Prevention and the 2016 Career Achievement Alumni Award from the University of Denver’s Graduate School of Professional Psychology.

She has a Doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Denver, a Masters in non-profit management from Regis University, and a Bachelors in psychology and studio art with a minor in economics from Bowdoin College. She has written four books on mental health and violence prevention.

Continuing Education Credits

CEs may be available for select professions, as listed in the target audience. Hours will be dependent on the actual recording time. Please check with your state licensing board or organization for specific requirements.

There may be an additional fee for CE certificates. Please contact our Customer Service at 1-800-844-8260 for more details.

**Materials that are included in this course may include interventions and modalities that are beyond the authorized practice of mental health professionals. As a licensed professional, you are responsible for reviewing the scope of practice, including activities that are defined in law as beyond the boundaries of practice in accordance with and in compliance with your professions standards.